Fire Lord Dormant
by SeaBaby911
Summary: Azula has lost her mind. Zuko has an entire 100 years of bad deeds by the Fire Nation to patch up. Yet on the 26th of April, the siblings remember a promise to an earth-dweller girl called Chloe. But Chloe has a problem of her own to deal with: War.
1. Prologue: Rusty Land Rover

**THIS. IS. A. PROLOGUE. AFTER. THE. CHAPTER. CHAPTER. BAR. STOPS. SAYING. PROLOGUE. AND. STARTS. SAYING. "CHAPTER". IT WILL. START. THE MAIN. STORY. GAH.**

Sorry, just had a breakdown with people telling me I've posted the wrong story. BECAUSE I HAVEN'T.

* * *

I was just sitting in my room when everything changed. Just reading a book, being peaceful and all that shit. But the noise I heard next…if I had ignored it things wouldn't have turned out so painful in the future. I couldn't have known what events were gonna be set in motion when I ran to my window and peered out at the rusty old car parking in the driveway of the house next door. It looked like what might've been a Land Rover, but you couldn't really tell with the thick layer of rust and dirt that covered the car. Then, the people in the car stepped out, and I realised the clapped-out old banger of a car was just the tip of the iceberg with this family's weirdness.

Firstly, They were dressed like they came straight out of old-age Asia: long flowing kimonos, armour, top-knots, the whole she-bang. I opened my window a bit, and their voices drifted into my room.

"Right, I'm taking the horse and cart next time. Earth dwellers call THAT decent transport?" A small dark-haired girl in red armour was complaining to whoever listened. A woman I took for her mother looked down at her with a slight smile. This woman had a top-knot the same as the others, and a kimono-esque dress that trailed along the ground as she walked.

"Azula, I'm sure it will get better. Your father's just getting used to driving, aren't you Ozai, dear?" She put her hand on the man I gathered was her husband's shoulder. He was the most strange looking of all. Long, flowing black hair, a black top-knot and the weirdest beard I had ever seen. It was like one of those strap-on beards ancient Pharaohs used to wear yet…this man's was real. He was wearing what looked like a dark red dress, and leathery armour. I supposed they would call it a robe, not a dress, though.

"Ursa, would you please wake Iroh and Zuko up? I need them to help with the bags." Ursa nodded, and reached back into the car.

"Come on, sleepy-heads. We're here, and you need to carry the bags." Soon enough, a boy about my age with a long black ponytail crawled out of the car, followed by a rather large man with, yes, ANOTHER top-knot and a pointy beard.

"Looks like you have to carry my bags, Zuzu." Said the girl called Azula, dropped her bags on Zuko's foot. "Good luck with that, wimp features." Zuko hopped around, clutching his foot.

"Ow, ow, OW! What do you have in that bag, Azula?" The fat man chuckled.

"I'll get that for you, Prince Zuko." Prince? Perhaps a nickname? They couldn't be royalty…could they? I turned my attention back to the strange family as Ozai and Iroh loaded the bags out of the back. I was half surprised the two of them didn't trip over their long dresses…whoops, I mean robes. The boy, Zuko, was dressed in a slightly less feminine version of Azula's armour, complete with pointy shoes. Confused, I watched the men stagger inside with their heavy loads, and as the door shut behind them I had made up my mind. If only I hadn't...

* * *

_Ding Dong!_

The door swung open, and I came face-to-face with the fat man. Except, he wasn't in his robes, he was in a red shirt and some rather large trousers to compensate for his round belly. The top-knot was gone, and in it's place his long grey hair way scraped back into a neat pony-tail. I noticed the beard was still there, though. I shook my head, blonde pigtails flopping, and smiled a bright smile.

"Hi! I'm Chloe, and this is my mum, my grandma, my granddad and my little sister Izzy." I said perkily, pointing to each of them in turn, and to my 1 year old sister asleep in my mother's arms.

"Sally," my grandma said, shaking the fat man's hand.

"Ray," said my grandad, doing the same.

"Claire," said my mum, and nodded because of the lump she was holding in her arms.

"We just wanted to welcome you to Evergreen, so we baked a cake and put a packet of saffron tea in here!" I smiled, handing the box I was holding over. A smile crept over the man's face.

"Saffron tea? Out here in England? Well, thank you there, young Chloe, and your family." The man grinned broadly. "My name is Iroh, and I appreciate the welcome." My parents began to turn to go when Iroh called out. "Don't go yet! Please, come in!" He stepped aside and my family filed into the house.

The rooms were un-remarkable, but hanging everywhere were these banners with Red emblems on them. They looked kinda like flames, and they matched the shapes that were on the top-knots of the family. I knew I wasn't imagining things.

"Ursa! Ozai! Azula! Zuko! We have guests! Come on down!" Iroh called out. "They brought saffron tea. SAFFRON!" First the boy trotted down the stairs, the one I recognised as Zuko. Then came Azula, the dark-haired little girl. Then Ursa drifted gracefully down the stairs, smiling.

"Welcome to our house! I'm afraid we haven't quite finished unpacking yet…" She sighed.

"We could help. We don't mind." Said my grandmother.

"We don't?" whispered my granddad. My grandma elboed him in the ribs, then turned to my mother.

"You take Izzy home, Claire. You need a rest." My mum smiled and walked out the house. My grandma turned back to Ursa. There were heavy footsteps and we looked up to see Ozai descending the stairs.

"Whatever you're selling, we don't want it." Ursa chuckled uneasily.

"They aren't selling anything, Ozai, dear. They're our neighbours." She turned to my grandma. "He's not normally like this. It was a long, uncomfortable drive here." My granddad smiled.

"We've had plenty of those. My name is Raymond, this is my wife Sally. The woman who just walked out was our daughter Claire with her daughter Izzy. And this blondie is our granddaughter Chloe." I smiled brightly. Ozai nodded.

"You've already met my brother, Iroh, I take it? Anyway, my name is Ozai, this is my wife Ursa and these are our children, Azula and Zuko." Zuko waved half-heartedly and Azula sniffed. My grandma clapped her hands together.

"Right, what boxes do you want where?

While the adults were off shouting about boxes, I sat on the sofa with Azula and Zuko.

"Soooo…where did you guys move from?" I said, trying to start a conversation.

"Tokyo, Japan." Replied Azula, without any enthusiasm.

"That's so cool! I've always wanted to go to Japan! What's Tokyo like?" Azula shrugged.

"Once you've seen one city, you've seen them all." I faltered a bit.

"Oh…" an awkward silence descended like a pair of ill-fitted shoes at Christmas until Iroh came bustling in with a pot of saffron tea and the cake I baked.

"Who wants snacks?" He smiled, giving us each a cup and plate of cake. We sat there, drinking our tea and eating our cake until Zuko tried to start a convocation.

"So, Chloe…how long you lived in Evergreen?" I smiled.

"Just two years. It's such a boring place though, why would you want to move here?2 Azula set her cup down on the table beside the sofa.

"Exactly what I said1 I said 'If you're gonna move to England, move to London. Then you see celebrities and get bombed and it's interesting!" but noooo. They want to move somewhere like Evergreen!" I nodded.

"Trust me, I'm exactly like that! Give me the chance; I'll get out of here. With or without family!" Azula's and my eyes met, and we grinned. Zuko glanced back and forth between us.

"Azula…why have you got the evil grin on? Should I be worried?" said Zuko, edging away from his younger sister. I laughed and set down my plate and cup on the floor.

"Have you guys seen you garden? It's huge! I've seen it from my window, it's got lots of trees and stuff. It'll be great for hide and seek!" Azula shot up.

"Race you two outside!" I set off running.

"You're on!"

"Wait for me!" cried Zuko, trying desperately to catch up with us.

* * *

And then it was decided. Azula and I were inseparable after that. Zuko too, but Azula and I were best friends. Seriously, we even did the carving thing in one of the trees in her garden saying: Azula & Chloe = BFFs. We talked about dumb family members, pain-in-the-ass siblings, freaky parents, everything. Azula, Zuko, and Chloe. We were the happiest trio of friends you could come about. We even found a broken panel in the fences between our gardens, and would creep through each day to surprise each other. I forgot completely about the weird clothes and the top-knots. The banners in their house were just decoration as far as I cared. My 8 year old mind was too involved in playing hide and seek and having cart wheel competitions. Then one day, I was playing catch with Azula and Zuko in the garden when Ozai called us in.

* * *

"WHAT?" I shrieked, distressed. "You can't leave in two months! I've only just gotten to know you guys!" Iroh put his hand on my shoulder and I sat down, on the verge of tears.

"It's not forever, young one. We'll be back next year." I clenched my fists.

"But that makes it worse! I have to wait the whole year for you guys to get back." Tears started running down my face, now that I knew I wasn't going to see my best friends for a year. Ursa got up and put her arm around me.

"Don't worry, Chloe. We will be back. That year will be gone in a flash. You'll see. Hey." She lifted my chin up and wiped my tears away. "Don't cry. It's not forever." I nodded, and smiled weakly.

"Not forever…" I echoed.


	2. Prologue: Lime Green Fire

**Those that are confused about the start of the story, don't be. It's Chloe's backstory, and you will need that later on in the fic.**

* * *

Those two months I spent every waking hour with Azula and Zuko. I refused to be parted from them. We went to the park together, got ice-creams together, everything. Then, one day about a month before they left, I decided to surprise Azula and Zuko by coming through the fence gap instead of the front door like I usually did. Yet another heinous mistake that sealed my fate, but I didn't know. I was only eight.

I chuckled as I stepped over my grandma's precious shrubs in our garden. Azula and Zuko would never see it coming! They were gonna get the shock of their lives. As I neared the broken plank, I heard strange whooshing and crackling sounds. It sounded like…fire. A bonfire? At that time of day I wrinkled my nose and sniffed the air. Sure enough, I smelt burning. Frowning, I lifted back the broken plank…and stopped in my tracks. I saw a wondrous, impossible thing happening. Fat old Uncle Iroh was…producing fire from his hands and performing martial art-esque punches and kicks, sending the flames out. Once he stopped, Azula did the exact same routine, from memory, but she had these gorgeous blue flames. Then Zuko tried it, and when trying a high-flying kick, whilst shooting fire out at the same time fell over and winded himself. I stifled a giggle but Azula let rip.

"You're never gonna be Fire Lord at THAT rate, Zuzu." Fire Lord? Wait…I thought back to when I was spying on everyone going into the house, Iroh had called Zuko prince…so that must've mean his dad was a king or something? And that made Azula a princess…wow. I shook my head slightly, and instantly regretted it, as it made the bushes rustle and the three fire-people sprung towards me and held me down.

Azula's face instantly softened when she saw me. "Chloe? What…how long have you been there?" I sighed.

"Long enough, Princess Azula." Azula's eye's widen slightly, but then turned back to Iroh with anger in her eyes.

"You knew she was there! Why didn't you tell us?" Iroh sighed.

"I thought it best if she knew. After all, you are keeping secrets from your best friend." Azula's mouth gulped like a fish, and turned back and forth between Iroh and I. Glaring at Iroh, she offered me her hand.

"I guess we should better explain." Zuko grinned and punched the air.

"YES, YES, YES! I don't have to avoid talking about home! No more secrets!" I smiled uncertainly.

"I guess Zuzu isn't good with secrets." I said. Azula sighed.

"Are we gonna explain or what, Iroh?" Iroh nodded, and the three of them led me to the middle of their garden. We sat down, and Iroh took a deep breath.

"Well, where to begin?"

Azula snorted, "How about the beginning, idiot?" she rolled her eyes and turned to me. "First things first, Clo. We don't come from Tokyo. We come from a completely different world, where there are no cars, buses, trains, anything your world has." She waited a while, and then frowned. "You aren't going to say anything?"

"I saw you make fire with your own bare hands. I think I get you aren't from this world." Zuko stifled a giggle, and Azula shot him a deadly glare.

"Anybody other than you would freak out, Clo. You truly amaze me sometimes." I smiled meekly.

"I try."

"Anyhow," Azula began again, "Our world is made up of four nations: The Fire Nation, The Earth Kingdom, The Water Tribes and The Air Nomads." I nodded.

"So you guys are the Fire Nation royal family?" Azula grinned.

"Again, amazing. Our father is son of the great Fire Lord Azulon, ruler over the mighty Fire Nation empire. Sadly, Zuzu here is the heir to the throne, so I don't get a cut in." Iroh gave Azula a reproachful stare.

"When my great-grandfather Sozin was in power, the Fire Nation was thriving with prosperity. Fire Lord Sozin reached out to the leaders of the other nations to join together as one and share the prosperity.

"But the nations declined. After they fell into disarray and chaos, Sozin was forced to start the war and take back the nations for their own good." I cocked my head to the side.

"So, the war's been going on, what, 70 years?"

Zuko chuckled. "Close. 100 years."

"Wow…" I grinned, "I take it the war efforts going well if the Fire Lord can afford to take a holiday, eh?" Iroh smiled slightly.

"We almost have the Earth Kingdom. I'm launching an attack on Ba Sing Se, the capital, soon." I thought for a minute.

"So if you can do that fire thing and you're in the Fire Nation…then do the other nations control their elements too?" Azula nodded.

"The specific term is bending. And yes, according to your nation, you can bend one of the four elements." Zuko stuck his tongue out.

"Yeah, but fire bending is the best." Azula grinned in return.

"For once, I actually agree with you, dumdum."

"So…" I started, and then faltered, "Nah, that's a dumb idea." Azula frowned.

"What idea? Go on, do share." I looked at their faces, and felt really embarrassed.

"Do you think I…could be a bender?" Azula grinned, obviously excited.

"Why don't we see? Go on, Iroh, show Chloe how to fire bend!" Iroh sighed.

"I don't think that's a good idea…" Zuko jumped up, indignant.

"Why not! We could practice together! Come on, Uncle!" Iroh shook his head, and got up.

"Your wish is my command, Prince Zuko." Azula dragged me up, and Iroh lead me to the middle of their huge garden, where we stood face to face.

"Fire bending comes from your stomach," he began, and laid his hands over the said area. I followed him, and he started again. "Your stomach is where all passionate emotion begins, and that is what powers fire bending."

"Hate, anger, vengeance…" chimed in Azula.

"…Love and happiness too." Said Iroh, giving Azula another glare. "Chloe, take a few deep breaths, and concentrate on the pit of your stomach. There should be a rumble, or a tingling there when you breathe out." I closed my eyes, and took a deep breath, slowly letting it out. I felt a slight ripple when I breathed out, and it was warm in my stomach. My eyes snapped open.

"I feel it!" Iroh smiled.

"Good, good. Now, to create a basic fire ball, you must direct that spark in your stomach to any part of your body you wish. Let's try arms. Remember, do not conduct the fire through your heart, it could rip it apart like an angry rhinoceros-bull." I gulped, and nodded. "Imagine the fire travelling along your bone structure, and escaping out of your fingertips. Now, as you exhale, tighten your muscles in your stomach and force the fire on the move. Control it and it should come out of your hand automatically after you let it out of your torso. Depending on how much passion you force it out with, the strength will vary. Observe." Iroh took a deep breath, and made a punching motion, the fire speeding from his fingertips, setting fire to a bush. "Azula, Zuko, get a bucket of water, and put that out immediately. Chloe, your turn."

I nodded, and put my hands together above my head, and as I brought them down, I thought of all my happy memories. My birthday parties, my parents, and friends, Azula, Zuko, Iroh, Ozai, Ursa…I smiled and felt the spark in my stomach. Exhaling, I pushed my happy memories into my stomach forcing the spark up, out of my torso and into my arm. I made a punching motion and felt the fire leave my body. There was a green flash, and the tree next to me was ablaze in lime-green flames.

"Wow…" I said, amazed, "Are they supposed to be green?" Iroh didn't answer; he was too busy looking in awe at the tree ablaze in green.

"Zuzu, don't be so slow! I bet half the garden is on fire and it's your entire fault!"

"Get lost, Azula! If you weren't so violent, we wouldn't have spilt so much!" The two siblings ran in carrying a huge bucket of water, but completely forgot about it when they saw the burning tree.

"Green?" wondered Zuko aloud, "But how..?"

"You must be prodigy, Chloe…" said Azula, then a slow grin crept across her face. "Brilliant! Someone will finally understand a superior fire bender's pain! I don't have to complain to dumdum over there!"

"What's going on out there?" Ozai rushed out into the garden, Ursa hot on his trails. They looked at the tree, then at me, then back at the tree again. We stood there for a few minutes until Ursa yelled: "My bushes! Put out the damn fire already!"

It turned out I WAS a fire bending prodigy, and within 3 weeks of intensive training I was up to Azula's level of fire bending, except I used happiness and love to fuel mine. I respected Zuly's methods, but I wasn't dark or evil enough to draw power from people's pain.

When they left to go back to the Fire Nation, I wasn't as sad as I would've been before the ire bending training. I had my training to keep me company, didn't I? Even during school, my friends noticed a difference in me. I was losing my puppy fat, and I kept myself to myself.

Azula and Zuko came back as promised the next year, but without Iroh. He was off fighting in the Battle of Ba Sing Se. He sent us letters sometimes, with little parcels of tea for us. Azula and I continued the early morning training, but Zuko just watched. The whole family were always in their Fire Nation clothes around me; they didn't need to hide a thing. Azula taught me some new techniques, and my 9 year old self was never happier.

After they left, the impact of my training was really coming into play. I was by far the fastest runner in my class, and the most muscular. I started avoiding my friends at school so I could go off and find a quiet sport to practice fire bending. My school work was impeccable as ever and many of my short stories in English were based off Azula's world.

The next time Azula and co. came to visit, Zuko and I were 10, and Azula was 9. That was the year Fire Lord Ozai decided to give us some pointers in fire bending. It was one of the most dangerous experiences of my life, that first fire bending lesson, because he taught us to lightning bend and that was even more dangerous than fire bending. If you got the direction wrong, then you were dead. No chances of surviving. Zuko couldn't learn lightning bending because he was too hot headed. His temper was so quick to snap, he wasn't controlled enough for it. He sulked for 3 whole days about it.

The year that followed the Fire Royal's absence was my most strange. I don't think I had a conversation with anyone in my year for more than 15 seconds. There was this new girl who nobody liked, her name was Mecca, and she was a black belt in karate. We talked briefly, but didn't really click, considering I was retreating inside myself, despite my childish disposition. School friends really weren't my thing.

It was when I was 11, that was when it all changed. For one, I got my pigtails cut off, and replacing them was a choppy bob with a chunky side fringe that infuriated everyone when I kept flicking it out of my face. Yet, the biggest change wasn't me. It was the Royals. Ursa wasn't there, Zuko wouldn't talk to me the first couple of days and Azula got…eviler. If it was possible. Iroh was there too, but he was different. Sad. Depressed even. I didn't know what to do. I was still training with Azula, and we were…well, to put it bluntly, amazing and it was fantastic to have a sparring partner again but without Ursa, Zuko not talking and Iroh's sadness…it was like the family wasn't whole anymore. I noticed the crown upon Ozai's head had changed and it struck me. He had been crowned Fire Lord. Azulon was dead. Then I wondered what Ursa had to do with it all…and sort of gave up. I turned my attention to making Zuko and Iroh smile like they used to.

Eventually, I got depressed with all the moping, and sat the two down and asked what happened. Turned out that Lu Ten, Iroh's son, had died during the siege of Ba Sing Se, and they had failed. Ursa had just disappeared in the night, and Ozai wouldn't tell Zuko where she was. I was dumb struck. I was lost for words for once in my life, and all I could do was hug the two of them.

That was the weirdest visit they made, because as well as all the drama and lies, I remember that was when I realised I had a huge crush on Zuko. I knew that their next visit would be different from the others, as we were getting to that age when hormones kicked in and everything got awkward. But even I, the withdrawn fire bending smart arse I was, couldn't have predicted the events in the next visit.


	3. Prologue: Moosapoises and Mai

I stood in the driveway of the unused house, my fringe flipping into my eyes. My red jacket billowed in the wind, and I gripped my Fire Nation hairpin in my right hand even tighter. Head down, eyes closed, just listening for the familiar rumble of the old beaten up Land Rover. Sure enough, 5 seconds later, the rumble came into earshot. I calculated it would take approximately 15 seconds to come into view, and when it did, I smirked slightly. I was always right those days. I stepped aside, and the rusty old car stuttered its way into the driveway, as it had always done. The doors were flung open, and happy looking Azula entered my vicinity.

"Chloe…trustworthy as ever. You remember every year."

I smiled slightly. I made a small inclination of my head. "I would never forget, Princess Azula." We stood there for a few seconds, and then burst into laughter and hugged. "Good to see you, Zuly."

She grinned. "You too. How's the fire bending?"

"Couldn't be better."

Azula wagged her finger at me. "Keep up at this rate, and you're going to become better than me…"

Laughing, I pushed the finger away. "…And I would never want to be better than the Fire Princess. I reckon I'm perfect already, so, y'know."

Zuko pushed Azula to the side. "Don't I get a hello?

"Hmm…lemme think…" Zuko rolled his eyes and pulled me into a tight embrace. I blushed slightly, thankful he couldn't see my face. He pulled away and grinned.

"Haven't gone crazy without us yet?" Chuckling, I punched his shoulder playfully.

"No, not yet." Ozai got out of the drivers seat and nodded his head to me.

"Hello Chloe." I put my hands together and bowed as the Fire Nation population did.

"Fire Lord Ozai. Welcome back to Earth." There was a tumbling, and Iroh scrambled out of the car.

"Chloe, my favourite Earth dweller! Hello again, young one." I smiled, and Iroh pulled me into an engulfing hug, not dissimilar to Zuko's.

"Iroh," I poked his stomach, "You're putting on a bit of weight." Iroh feigned a scolding expression.

"Don't be so disrespectful to the Dragon of the West! So what if I have had a little too much cream tea?" Shaking my head, I peered around Iroh's vast figure and into the Land Rover.

"Do you want any help with the bags?" Ozai placed his hand on my shoulder.

"Actually, we have different plans for this year." I cocked my head to the side.

"Fire Lord, what do you mean?" I asked, confused.

Azula came up from behind me. "There's been a bit of trouble with the war and resistances recently," she started, "And daddy thought it was best if we went on vacation in the Fire Nation."

"What? Then why come here?" Zuko and Azula exchanged looks.

"We wanted you to come with us." My eyes widened in shock and surprise.

"Me…go to the Fire Nation?" Azula nodded.

"My friends Mai, and Ty Lee shall be coming also, I think you would like the company." I furrowed my brow.

"My parents…" Ozai silenced me with a hand movement.

"It's all been arranged. We have Fire Nation clothes for you in the black trunk. Go and get whatever possessions you wish, and we shall leave immediately." I stood there for a second, then nodded and ran back home. I collected my most prized possessions: my iPod, my laptop and my stuffed rabbit. Yes, I was an emotionless prodigy, but I still slept with a stuffed toy. Don't judge me. I took a moment to brush my hair, and put my hairpin in place. Yes. I looked quite the Fire Nation princess.

I leapt in the Land Rover, squashed between Azula and Zuko, anxious yet excited. My first trip into the Fire Nation and I was going to meet Azula's friends. Would they like me? Would I fit in? I shook my head, and teturned to concentrating on where we were going. Ozai was driving along a forest path which I recognized to be a track from Gloam forest, right outside Evergreen. Ozai got out of the car, and retrieved something that looked like a huge claw.

At this point in my life, I had never inquired on how the Fire Royals gotten to and fro from my world and theirs. I was about to find out, and Ozai slashed the claw in the air, forming a huge rip in what I guessed was the weakest point of our dimension. Ozai got back into the car and explained that the claw was a dragon claw, and they possessed dimension-shattering qualities if used with proper fire benders. Iroh, Azula and Zuko lifted a heavy pendant with their claw on it from beneath their robes, and Iroh reached into his bag and pulled out another one.

"You know, dragons do have five claws…" Iroh then handed over the claw to me. "This is so you can come and see us, whenever you want to. Normally only members of the royal family have one…" I gazed down at the claw in my hand in awe.

"Yet, I believe we can make an exception in your case, Chloe." Ozai smiled slightly as he said that, and I bowed my head slightly.

"Th-Thank you." I looked up sharply, realising we were starting to move through the portal, and then suddenly, we were through the blue gash and trundling along a jungle path. Disorientated by the sudden change of setting, my head snapped around, trying to get my bearings. Zuko nudged me.

"Gorgeous, isn't it? Welcome to Ember Island." The Land Rover soon drove out of the dense foliage, and was rumbling along a beaten dirt track. The sky was a brilliant blue, not a cloud in the sky, and the sun beat down upon us like a smiling master. There were beautiful beaches of light pink sand, and when you caught a glimpse of the sea, it was a sparkling turquoise that seemed to be alive with life.

"Oh my Agni," I said, leaning over Azula and looking out of the window, "What the hell are those?" Azula followed my gaze, and saw the strange looking creatures jumping in and out of the waves. They looked like dolpins…but they had antlers. ANTLERS.

"Oh, they're just Moosapoises. Nothing special." My eyes widened.

"Nothing special? Dear spirits…" The car soon rolled up to a large villa, overlooking the exquisite seafront, and two girls about Azula's age were standing in front of it to greet us. I stumbled out of the car, still in a daze from the beauty of the surroundings. A girl with a long brown plait rushed forward to meet me, bowing vigorously.

"You must be Chloe? Yeah, you must be, you have yellow hair! No-one has yellow hair here." I raised my eyebrows in surprise.

"Really?"

"Uh-huh," nodded the girl enthusiastically. "I'm Ty Lee! I go to the Fire Acadamy with Azula; she never shuts up about you! How good a fire bender you are and everything? Do you really have green fire? That's so cool!" Ty Lee started blabbering more, but my attention wasn't on her. It was on the other girl and Zuko. Mai, I supposed her name was. She was talking quietly to Zuko and shooting me death glances every so often. I narrowed my eyes; I figured I wasn't gonna get along with her. Ty Lee started to notice my glaring, and turned around to wave at Mai.

"Don't worry about her, Chlo, she's a little suspicious. Can I call you Chlo? It's really cool!" I nodded and waved my hand. I walked over, and prentended not to have seen the glares.

"You must be Mai," I said coolly, and held out my hand to shake, " Pleasure to meet you." Mai looked at my hand as if it was something poisonous.

"You're meant to shake it. It's an Earth tradition." Whispered Azula in Mai's ear. She slowly reached out her hand and shook mine.

"Nice to meet you." She said with absolutely no emotion at all, and no intention meaning it. That was it. That was start of the uneasy feud.


	4. Prologue: Love Amongst the Dragons

Azula offered us a tour around the villa while the men unpacked, and we agreed. Setting off at a brisk trot, Azula ushered us around the house, pointing the occasional family portrait or previous Fire Lord or family trinket. Ty Lee squealed at one particularly big room we passed.

"What's in that room?"

Azula gave a slight smile, "That, Ty Lee, is our bedroom. Shall we check it out?" Ty Lee didn't need any more notice. She leapt into the room like a frenzied beast, whilst Azula and I followed, tittering, Mai lagging behind, her hands in her sleeves. Ty Lee was already bouncing on one of the huge four poster beds, laughing like hell.

"This is amazing!" she exclaimed, "Why haven't we come here before, Azula?"

Azula shrugged, "Dad doesn't like visitors."

I walked over to the bed on the far edge of the room. "I call this bed."

Ty Lee stopped jumping, "I have this one!" Mai shrugged and walked to the bed on the complete opposite end to mine.

Azula grinned. "I guess I got this one. Anyway, I think the boys are lugging our trunks up here. Shall we see how they're doing?" Sure enough, just as we were about to open the door, Zuko came in, grunting and pulling two heavy trunks. One was black and one was grey. After he set them down in the corner, he wiped the sweat from his brow, and sat down on the black trunk.

"What in Agni have you girls got in those trunks?" Mai shrugged.

"Just the essentials. Shrouken, katanas, daggers, darts…" Both my eyebrows shot up.

"Sounds like you took half the Fire Nation armoury!" I said, chuckling quietly.

"I like to be well defended. You never know what kind of people you'll come across." I knew this comment was directed at me, and there was an awkward silence until Zuko clapped his hands.

"Yeah…um, Dad says we're gonna go to the cove in a few minutes, so if you guys could get your beach stuff…yeah." Zuko backed off, evidently aware of the tension between me and Mai. I broke off my even gaze with her, and turned to Azula.

"So, you never told how long we're here for?" Azula nodded.

"Oh yeah, we're here for three weeks." I swallowed and nodded too.

"I guess situations with the Earth Kingdom are pretty bad then." Azula sighed.

"You could say that." Ty Lee rolled her eyes at us.

"Oh come on, political freaks! Let's go to the beach!" Shaking off my feeling of anger and resentment, I grinned.

"The black trunk's mine?"

"Yep."

Fire Lord Ozai took us down this winding path, leading away from the swarming main beach. Azula had packed me a see-throughish red dress, which floated over my bikini perfectly. I still had my top-knot in, but half my hair was down so it looked a 'lil less…fussy. Ty Lee was wearing this tiny white bikini, her hair up in the adorable braid, and Azula was in a teeny-tiny red skirt and bikini. Mai, however, had this floor length skirt, and huge floppy hat and a bikini top so long you could hardly see her belly button. Her black hair was up neatly, and angular features set in an unemotional state. Zuko carried an umbrella for her, and I frowned in distaste. She was going to the beach. It wasn't like she was going to avoid getting a tan without sun cream.

Iroh and Ozai soon led us down some stairs on a cliff-face, and soon they opened out into this gloriously amazing cove. When I had thought that Ember Island was beautiful, that was before I saw the cove. The water was clearest blue and you could see the tiny little fish swimming around these dazzling displays of coral. The sand was the lightest candyfloss pink, and there were tall palm trees growing off the side of the cliff, giving shade. Right at the end of the beach was this tiny shack, which Azula rushed towards immediately. I followed, and on it was a sign that read: "Property of the Fire Royals". Ozai set himself down inside it, and Iroh pulled out flask of tea that was in the hamper her was carrying.

"Jasmine tea, anyone?" Zuko and I took a cup but Azula just waved him away.

"No thanks, old man." I finished my cup, and set it down by Iroh.

"Last on into the sea is a doomed air bender!" Azula, Ty Lee and I raced into the sea, whilst Mai just set up camp underneath a tree, Zuko standing over her, deliberating over whether to be a parasol holder or join us in the sea. He chose the latter option, dropping the parasol on Mai's head. We splashed around in the sea for a bit, then Ozai called us in for lunch. More sunbathing, then it was time to go back to the villa to get changed for going out.

We went to the theatre most nights, perhaps a concert, buffet on the beach, but when we went to the theatre that first night, it was probably the worst. We went to go and see a soppy love story, which Iroh picked because he thought I might like it. It was called "Love Amongst the Dragons" and it was the shittiest thing I had ever watched in my life. I think Iroh was enjoying it, but you could see Ozai falling asleep in his chair. That wasn't the annoying thing though. The annoying thing was that Mai was glued to Zuko's mouth the ENTIRE time. I knew by the first day, without anyone telling me, that Zuko and Mai were dating. I mean, he was holding a parasol for her. He wouldn't even do that for me on a good day. Yet, I was clenching the armrests of the velvet chair so hard, and with so much anger, they began to rip and smoulder slightly. I tried to ignore the soft slurping noises coming from behind by conversing with Azula, but we soon lost things to talk about. I had a terrible dilemma: listen to brain-killing mushiness coming from the absolutely crap actors below me, or burn the chair. I chose the latter option. We had to evacuate the building…but sadly, it was open in a couple of days so we got to go and see the end of Love Amongst the Dragons. Fun.

During buffets and parties that we were invited to, I would get Fire Nation nobility come up to me and ruffle my hair and ask Ozai if I were his. They took me as part of the Royal Family and Ozai would say that I practically was and have me and Azula perform a fire bending routine. I remember the whispers going around after we'd finish:

"She's better than the crown prince,"

"They both are,"

"The blonde girl should replace the prince,"

"He doesn't seem the Fire Nation type,"

Zuko always left those in a big huff, and wouldn't speak to me for the rest of the night. It was always awkward in our room because Mai would accuse me of trying to steal Zuko's place and I would just brush it aside coolly. But on the last night, there was another big party to celebrate the Fire Lord's stay at Ember Island, and just that happened. Our room was extremely angsty that night…

"You're a liar," spat Mai, her voice oozing in venom, "You just pretend to be Azula's friend to get in with the Fire Lord." I rolled my eyes, and turned over.

"If that was so, whilst I say Azula is my best friend, seeing as you say Azula is your best friend, I could say the same about you, Mai." I could hear gulping like a fish, trying to think of a comeback. Smiling slyly, I closed my eyes. But she wasn't done yet.

"You think you're so clever, don't you. But you're not."

"Contrary to popular belief, Mai, yes, yes, I do think I'm clever. Because I am." I sighed, not wanting to hear all of this at midnight.

"You're just a lying bitch, who's out to steal other people's boyfriends." As soon as those words had left her mouth, I could hear Azula hitting her head in disbelief. No-one called me that. It was on account that previously that year my boyfriend, Joji, had dumped me for a bitchy girl not too dissimilar to Mai, and in trying to become friends with Joji again, the girl in question (her name was Marni Blossom) had spread that phrase around the school and causing all taken girls to hate me with an unwavering passion. So that phrase wasn't exactly Chloe-friendly.

"What did you call me?" I said slowly rising out from underneath my covers.

"A lying…bitch. Who is out to…st-steal…people's…b-b-b-boyfriends…" She started stuttering towards the end because I had summoned up two flickering fireballs, and was standing right at the foot of her bed. The green light reflected eerily onto my face and gave the impression that I was something of the supernatural kind.

"Now, what were you saying, Mai?" I said in a sickly sweet tone, but with a strong undercurrent of threat.

"N-nothing." I smiled nastily.

"Good. Mention this to Zuko, and you'll wake up one morning without any of that pretty little black hair. Got it?" She nodded, gulping. "Good." I climbed back into bed, feeling pleased with myself that I had completely terrorised Mai and Ty Lee hadn't been awake to here it or see it.

The next day, everyone piled into the Land Rover, Mai and Ty Lee included, and we dove to the portal site. Ozai gestured to me to get out of the car.

"Do you have your pendant?" I lifted it up to show him. "Good. Now, imagine the claw is a conductor of your fire bending. An extension of you body. Just use it as you would fire bend and it should open up the portal. Conducting my fire bending…I closed my eyes and slashed the claw diagonally while forcing my power through it, and the blue portal appeared. Ozai nodded, smiling. We got back in the car and started driving back to the abandoned house. Ty Lee looked in amazement at the barrage of cars that passed us, asking me to tell her what each type was, and what was a telephone pole, and why we had antennae on the tops of ours roofs.

We soon arrived back at the house, and Zuko lifted my trunk down from the back.

"Don't worry," he said, before I could even utter a word, "It's all yours." Then came the bad news.

"Chloe…" Ozai began, "I'm sorry, but everyone will be unable to return next year."

"WHAT?" I shrieked, "But…"

"I'm sorry," he said, "I truly am. But the war…" I nodded, trying to be professional.

"I…I understand, Fire Lord." _Do not cry in front of Mai, Do not cry in front of Mai_, my brain was thinking. "So…this is goodbye for good?"

"No, no, no!" Azula said waving her hands, "One of us might come back each year. We wouldn't forget about you, Chlo!"

"How could we forget about you?" Iroh chuckled. Swallowing back the lump in my throat, I gazed at the floor.

"It's been an honour meeting you guys…"

"Come on, Chlo. It isn't forever!" Zuko sighed.

"I know, I know," I said, silencing him, "But just let me say this. I'd have never have become the person I am today if I hadn't met you guys. I owe you so much. I just…I'm gonna miss you. So much, it's gonna hurt. But I guess I gotta keep soldiering on, eh? So come back whenever you can. I'll be waiting." I thought for a minute then smiled. "If we don't meet before then, meet me back here in Evergreen by the post office on my 17th birthday. That way…I know I'll be there." Azula nodded.

"Right. 26th April, 5 years time. Until then?" I smiled, teary-eyed.

"Until then." Azula and I hugged, and she sighed.

"I'm gonna miss you too, Chloe." Iroh pulled me into one of those all-enveloping hugs.

"My little prodigy," he said, stroking my hair, "I'll be seeing you."

"Yeah." Fire Lord Ozai looked me directly in the eye, and I held his piercing gaze, something I would have been unable to do before. He nodded and clapped me on the shoulder.

"You will do great things, Chloe Norris." I bowed and gave a slight smile.

"Thank you, Fire Lord." Ty Lee bounced up to me and hugged me tightly.

"You're one of the most amazing clever people I've ever known! Not to mention pretty! We'll see each other again soon, right?" I gave her a reassuring grin.

"Sure, Ty Lee." I nodded to Mai, and she looked away in embarrassment, then came to Zuko.

"So…" he started, "I won't be seeing you for a long time, eh?"

"Yeah," I said nervously. _Just kiss him, just kiss him_, my brain was shouting. Suddenly he was pulling me into a tight hug.

"I miss you," he whispered in my ear, "You little smart-ass fire bending prodigy you are." I smiled, a solitary tear running down my face.

"You too." I stepped back, as I watched Zuko get in line for getting back into the back seat. It was now or never.

"Zuko!" I shouted. He turned around, a look of confusion on his face. I ran straight into him and reached up and kissed him. Right on the lips. I pulled away, and blushed.

"I wanted to say bye properly, I guess." He nodded, a dazed look on his face.

"Bye…Chloe."

"Bye Zuko. Bye Everyone!" As the car pulled out of the driveway, I waved them, not knowing that that would be the last time I would see them together for the next 5 years. I touched my lips with my fingertips; he was still there.

"Bye." I whispered, but my voice was lost in the gathering storm.


	5. Chapter 1: How Could You Forget?

_5 Years Later…_

My lonely eyes glanced around the barren landscape surrounding Evergreen. I was sitting atop the old Post Office, the bustle of my soldiers below me in the camp long gone, their voices lost to sleep. I hardly noticed the beauty of the night before me, the stars that glittered in the sky like marbles dropped abstractly from the hands of a careless toddler. The moon, that shone so brightly, yet sapped my strength, I ignored. My eyes were only for the small patch of woods that was seemingly untouched by the carnage of Anti-Bender riots. It looked out of place among the scorched crops, skeletons of trees, and graves. They were too pristine to fit in with their surroundings; but of course I had assured that they were kept that way. It may have scared off my friends if they decided to come back.

I mentally slapped myself; **friend**. Shaking my head, I started to wonder why I was thinking about…them so much lately. I could even bring myself to mention their names; I still hadn't come to terms with their death. I got on with thousands of my own soldiers being killed as the War raged on, but those people? I couldn't even utter their names.

I supposed I could look forward to a visit from Azula. I mean, she had come every year, sometimes bringing Ty Lee, as promised. But, even she had stopped answering my letters. I sighed. Was I losing everyone? Was it really that bad over there? I pushed all my idiotic questions from my brain and resumed my waiting. I started to glance down at my watch. 11:59pm.

I sighed, as a beeping noise was omitted from my wrist. Looking up at the sky, I gave a tired smile. 17. Big number.

"Happy Birthday, General." My head snapped behind me, I was already jumping up into a fighting stance. It was only my Earth Bending commander, Ji. I relaxed slightly, still on my guard.

"Thank you, Ji. I sense that your presence isn't just to give a lonely General comfort." Ji bowed his head.

"No, General Dormant. We have been given word from the Fire Lord about your deportation reprisal."

"And?" Ji shook his head.

"Nothing, General." I clenched my fists.

Of course, I should have expected this. Our 'wonderful' and 'glorious' Fire Lord hated me. Then again, I didn't think a childhood rivalry would get in the way of war, but obviously I was wrong. I should have told my men the truth when I could have, before that cowardly Fire Lord could have done anything. Obviously, I didn't, I argued, and then, if I failed the up and coming battle (which was more than unavoidable due to lack of troops) he was going to deport me. But I knew that it wasn't just going to be deportation. He was going to lock me up, like he had done to so many of my friends, just because we knew the truth. Because we knew 'his' little secret.

"Thank you, Ji. You are dismissed." Ji put his hands together and bowed to me, but then turned around.

"General…you should get some sleep. We have a busy schedule tomorrow, and with the Water Benders and Warriors arriving…" Ji drifted off, and then looked me direct in the eye. "She's not going to come, Chloe." A tear slid down my face, and onto my armour.

"I know." I closed my eyes and heard Ji walking back to his tent. I let loose a silent scream into my hands, and threw a punch of brilliant green fire into the air. How could Azula have forgotten?

* * *

_Meanwhile, in the Royal Fire Palace…_

"Fire Lord Zuko!" The scar-faced ruler turned to see one of his royal advisors, Maki, running towards him, his top-knot singed and the latter part of his cape in flames. As he stopped before his Fire Lord, Zuko stamped on them, but not before he noticed the colour of the flames. They were blue.

"What's Azula done now? And why were you nearby the prison anyway? I thought after the last incident, Maki, the prison would be the last place for a visit…" Maki shifted uncomfortably.

"One of the prison guards dragged me in there, he needed me to scribe down what she was shouting…" Maki shuddered and handed the Fire Lord a battered piece of parchment.

"April…Earth…17…Post…I Promised?" Zuko read out, staring at the paper in confusion. Those words…they rang a bell.

"Perhaps she was to meet someone in Omashu?" suggested Maki, "See: Post, I Promised, Earth." Zuko shook his head.

"No. The only person she could meet in Omashu would be Mai…and I don't think Azula would want to meet Mai. Not now." Maki scratched his head.

"Then who, m'lord?" Zuko sighed.

"I think the best answer would to go and see Azula herself." Maki gulped, and then nodded. They walked out of the light of the Fire Nation Palace, and descended the flight of stairs in the prison tower, leading to the lowest level, where only the most dangerous persons or the criminally insane were kept.

By the time Zuko and Maki got there, Mai, Iroh and the Gaang were waiting by Azula's door. The fire had stopped, it seemed, only to be replaced my heart wrenching sobbing, and screams. Aang sighed, putting his hand on his tired friend's shoulder.

"She's been shouting for you, Zuko." Zuko winced; he had heard on the way up.

Sokka scratched his head. "Can't you just ship your psycho sister off to the Boiling Rock or something?" he yawned, "I'm fed up with all these midnight traipses…"

Katara smacked her brother upside the head, and gave him a disparaging look. "Sokka. Be polite." She looked sympathetically to Zuko. "Don't worry Zuko. I'm sure she's fine." Toph stamped her foot impatiently.

"C'mon Sparky, just go and talk to her already. I need my beauty sleep."

"What beauty sleep?" jibed Sokka, earning himself a swift kick in the groin. Mai took her boyfriend aside from the others and gave him a serious look.

"You shouldn't go in there Zuko." Zuko shook off her hand.

"It's not like she's gonna kill me. She chained, remember?" Mai shook her head.

"I know…but it might bring up some of the past." Zuko gave her a level look, not knowing what she was talking about and went back to the door. Iroh gave a slight smile as Zuko entered the cell.

"He will remember soon…" he muttered.

"Azula?" Zuko took a vary step forward as his sister's head slowly rose up.

"Zuzu…" Azula gave a weary smile, "You came." Zuko nodded, still on his guard. His sister was unpredictable in this state.

"Azula…what did you promise?" asked Zuko, take a few more steps forward and tentatively kneeling down onto her level. Azula reached out to grab her brother's hands, her chains rattling. Azula looked through her curtain of rank and unruly black hair into Zuko's amber eyes.

"Zuzu…HOW COULD YOU FORGET HER?" Zuko tried to recoil, but Azula's grip on his wrist was vice-like.

"Her? Azula, help me. What did you mean Earth?" Zuko studied his sister's face. "Is there someone in the Earth Kingdom we should be remembering?" Azula shook her head, tears of anger running down her face.

"Zuko…" Azula whispered, her tears staining her dirty red tunic further, "Dragon claw." Zuko's eyes widened.

"What did you say...?" Azula let go of Zuko's wrists and he scrambled back, knowing that Azula's period of sanity was over.

"DRAGON CLAW!" Zuko rushed out of the cell as Azula let loose a barrage of blue fame, scorching the cell bars. Zuko had a determined look upon his face, and turned to Aang.

"Get Appa ready. Everyone, get into your travelling clothes."

"Where are we going, Fire Lord Zuko?" asked Iroh with a smile, already knowing the answer.

Zuko turned around and grinned. "To see an old friend."

"Oh deep joy." Muttered Mai, her nose wrinkled in disgust. "Deep, deep joy."


	6. Chapter 2: War Plans and Anger

Eventually, after several more hours of waiting, Ji managed to coax me down from the roof. I was broken-hearted in a way: I just couldn't accept that Azula had forgotten, but I had learnt over the years to put up the tough exterior and take anything and everything in my stride. I couldn't sleep, so Ji and I were mulling over battle tactics for the siege against London in the map tent. There was a street plan of the entire city before us, and we were drawing with coloured markers where the different division were going to start.

"So, if we station some of Quinque's men outside of London, on the Thames, we can make that our base camp for healing and whatnot?"

I nodded. "Yeah, and if we put a few of the earth benders and protection, that should be enough. But the stationing of our divisions is another matter…"

Ji pondered over the map. "We'll just have to take the 3 most direct routes to Buckingham Palace on our own."

Sighing, I agreed. "They'll have machine guns."

"That's where the water benders come in. The water shields will absorb the impact." I drew in the blue line representing the water benders, and traced over the rest of the streets with my finger.

"Ji…" I sighed. He put in hand on my shoulder and gave me a forlorn look.

"Chloe, we're doing everything we can." I shook his hand off, scowling.

"I don't want people to die for nothing." Ji didn't reply, and an awkward silence descended like a heavy fog as we stared at the map. The silence was shattered as a young officer ran into the deep mahogany tent, panting heavily.

"General Dormant! There's…people outside." I looked up.

"People? How many? Benders?"

"Seven people, Ma'am. Two non-benders, Two fire benders, a water bender, an earth bender and an air bender." My eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"Air bender? I thought the Air Nomads had Africa quarantined off?"

The young man shifted, trying to regain his breath. "The air bender…doesn't look like one, but he demonstrated. And then…" Ji turned around, standing beside me.

"And then?" He said, shooting me a sideways glance.

"There's a metal box. With air holes. And there's someone sobbing and screaming inside it. And…"

I growled. "Damn it man, finish your sentences!" The officer's knees knocked together, almost audibly.

"There's blue fire coming out of it." I had left the tent before the man had even finished the word 'out'.

I raced through out the narrow passageways between the tents as quickly as I could, heading for the south gate. I could feel Ji and the officer struggling to keep up with me, and a hoard of soldiers following them. I skidded to a halt in front of the gate, waking up the guard standing by.

"Open the gate."

"Whuh-? General?"

"OPEN THE FUCKING GATE!" The sleepy man scrambled down from the lookout tower, and pulled back the bolts, and wrenched the gate back. Ji and the officer had caught up with me, and the soldiers following them flanked me either side. I smoothed my hair, adjusted my top-knot, and walked out of camp. I can't imagine what I must've looked like, perhaps some kind of manic demon emerging from hell, followed by her spawn. Or, at least, I think that's what I reckoned I looked like as the shock on those seven people's faces read.

There was a boy with an angry red scar covering his left eye and ear, and shaggy black hair. There was a girl with her hands stuffed in her sleeves and black hair bobbles atop her head partially behind him. There was an old, rather large, man with a pointy grey bead looking off into the distance, dressed in strange white robes with what looked like the lotus tile from Pai Sho emblazoned on them. There was a girl in blue, with mocha skin and hair loopies. There was a boy with a short ponytail standing beside her who I took to be her brother, as he had the same eyes and skin. A small black haired girl with cloudy green eyes stood in front of him, and I realised she was blind, but strangest of all was the air bender. Or, I thought he was an air bender. He had the master tattoos, but he only looked about 13. He was completely bald, but…that wasn't the strangest thing. All air benders were African or African in origin. Yet, this boy was ivory skinned.

There was a roar that shook me to the core. It resounded from a large, metal box set next to the air bender. It had a window covered in bars, and shooting through that window were bright, scorching, blue flames. I clenched my fists; it couldn't be Azula. Not Azula.

"Open the box." I barked to the officer who had seen me earlier. Trembling, he was handed a crow bar and popped open the side of the box.

I don't think that's such a good idea…" said the air bender, stepping forward. I motioned to the soldiers to hold him back, as well as the others. There was a struggle, and then my men had them all in strong lock holds. The screaming and fire from the box had ceased, only to be replaced with sobbing. Cautiously, I stepped forward, summoning to flickering balls of green flame.

Chained in the corner of the box, was Azula. No, not Azula. A mere shadow of Azula. Unkempt, crudely cut black hair hung over her tear stained face. Lipstick was long gone, but dried rivulets of mascara showed streams of past tears. Her tunic was filthy, and the shackles binding her had cut deep into her wrists and ankles, blood still dripping down her body. I rushed forward, and slid to my knees, holding Azula's face in my hands.

"Zuly? Oh spirits, please Zuly, talk to me." Azula's foggy eyes met mine.

"C-Chloe? You came back for…me." I was beginning to cry; I couldn't bear seeing my best friend treated like this.

"Of course," I murmured, stroking her hair, then standing up. "You're my best friend. Why would I abandon you?" I breathed deeply, and focused my fire chi. Swirling around, I summoned my lightning. It travelled from the pit of my stomach, along my arms and in one fell swoop, I slashed through Azula chains. I whistled to my men, and they marched in.

"Take Princess Azula to the infirmary. Heal her as best you can, clean her, feed her, and provide her with clothes. I have some business to attend to."

"Yes, General!" The soldiers bowed and picked up Azula, taking her into the camp. Furious, I walked out of the box and glared at the prisoners.

"Why was Azula in a prison?" I asked in a deadly dangerous voice.

The boy with the scar dared to answer. "Because she's crazy." My head snapped up and I bared my teeth.

"Azula is not crazy. Who are you anyway? The only people able to travel from this world to the next are the Fire Nation Royal Family and-" I stopped myself. "You stole Azula's dragon claw? You bastards!" The mocha skinned boy spoke up.

"The dragon claw was Zuko's! Not Azula's!"

"So you stole it from the dead prince. How noble of you." I sneered looking down my nose at the boy.

"Wait, what did you say?" the air bender said, confused. "Zuko's right here-" I spun around and looked him in the eye.

"How dare you lie to me? You are in no position to lie, not with my soldiers around." The blind kid shook her head.

"Dunno who you're listening to, hothead, but Princey boy's over there." She jabbed a finger towards the scarred boy.

"Zuko died in an Agni Kai, Along with his uncle. Azula wouldn't lie to me!" I glared daggers at the blind girl, but it was completely lost on her. I heard a slight gasp, and whipped around to stare at the scar boy.

"No way…" he whispered, head cocked to the side.

"What now?"

"…Chloe?" I froze; how could this boy know my name. I snapped out of the weakness and instantly went into assault mode. Grabbing his throat, I pinned him up against the camp wall and inspected his face. Was he a spy sent by the anti-benders? A mean trick from the Fire Lord?

"How do you know my name? Nobody calls me Chloe anymore. Only my closest friends and my commanders know my name." I spat viciously. "You, are neither."

"Young one…put Fire Lord Zuko down." That voice…I knew that voice. The lilting tone, the calm serenity…again, I froze. Pinned to the spot by the fact that I could've been wrong. That maybe…Azula had lied. Slowly, my grip loosened on the boy, and I turned to face the old man. I couldn't mistake that voice, and, taking a closer look, I really couldn't mistake that face.

"Iroh?"


	7. Chapter 3: The LongAwaited Explanation

I leant back on my chair, putting my feet upon my desk, twiddling my thumbs awkwardly. I was waiting for Azula to come in, as were the rest of Zuko's friends. I soon identified the girl with the angular features as Mai…which made me slightly annoyed, but I was then introduced to the others by Iroh. Katara and Sokka, children of Chief Hakoda of the Southern Water Tribe. Toph Bei Fong, daughter of a rich merchant. Avatar Aang, the last Air Bender in existence. I chuckled under my breath; I never thought Zuko would associate himself with the Avatar…or Water Benders for a matter, let alone help bring down his father.

The tent flap was then lifted up, and Azula shuffled in, looking unstable. I immediately stood up, and she ran into my arms, hugging me tightly.

"Woah," I said, holding my sobbing friend, "I never recalled you being this…emotional. Come on, it's alright. Sit down, Zuly. I've got some saffron tea here. Your favourite." Azula nodded, and curled up in a ball in a cushy armchair my men had brought in, sipping her tea and casting nervous glances around the room. Remaining standing, I surveyed the people sitting on an assortment of boxes and chairs in my tent.

"Ahem," I said, looking around, making sure I had everyone's attention, "Just a quick note: You are now in Fire Nation controlled War Territory. No matter whom you are, Avatar or peasant, if you break any of the carefully formulated laws passed by the Fire Lord, you are liable to death sentence and life imprisonment. You aren't in your world anymore, and you WILL obey our rules." The faces of my visitors paled, and I allowed myself a small smile. "I shall formerly introduce myself, as Zuko hasn't really explained. My name is General Dormant of the mighty southern Fire Nation battalions, master of the Phoenix Manoeuvre, Scourge of Birmingham, and etcetera. If you wish to know me, you may call me Chloe. You people are currently residing in the Evergreen War Camp, central to all goings on in the South. Any questions?" The boy named Sokka put his hand up.

"Uh…yeah. How do you know Zuko? He's never mentioned you before." I gritted my teeth and gave a cold smile.

"They were my next door neighbours. Anything else?" Zuko stood up.

"Um, yeah, what the hell happened here?" I raised my eyebrows at him.

"There was a war. No, there still is."

"I can see that! What I mean is how did it happen? And what happened to you?"

I scowled. "Nothing happened to me," I said, exasperated, "I'm just me. And as to the origins of the war…well, it's a long story." The avatar leaned back.

"We've got a lot of time." I shook my head, and sighed.

"Well, I haven't. I don't have enough time to sit around the campfire telling stories. Some people have a battle to organise." I brushed past the blind girl named Toph and was heading towards the tent flap when Iroh grabbed my arm.

"Chloe…please, explain. We need to know."

"Do we really? I mean, sorry for interrupting, but Zuko actually has a country to run. We aren't part of your little 'battle' strategies." Obviously, that was Mai. I turned around and gave her a death glare that could break a man's soul.

"If you don't want to be here that much, Mai, go home. I'm not stopping you. The rest of us will be here. Talking. Without you." Mai gave me a dirty look, and I sat down behind my desk again.

"Well," I murmured, "You really wanna hear this? It's kind of depressing." Everyone nodded, and I began to twiddle my thumbs.

"It began a few months after I came back from Ember Island." Toph frowned.

"You were on Ember Island? We were just there."

"Yeah, back when I was 12, I went for a vacation there with these guys," I gestured to Zuko and Azula, "Anyway, after I came back from Ember Island, benders started popping up all over the place. It was entirely public; and the government couldn't steal away every bender.

"But some people didn't like the prospect of bending. They didn't like that it made you more powerful, and riots started. That was when it began to get organised. The Anti-Benders united, and at their head was a 13 year old boy named Joji Ito." Zuko leaned forward, confused.

"But wait…that's the name of the guy who dumped you when you were younger…" I gave a sad smile.

"The very same. For some reason, the Anti-Benders listened to him, and it wasn't just riots. The Anti-Benders because the Anti-Bender army.

"I hadn't signed up then. I was just watching it all on TV and reading about it, and I never realised…"

"Realised what?" the water bender named Katara asked.

"I was practicing my fire bending in the garden when I thought my parents were out. They weren't." I ran my hand through my hair. "The next day, they drove me up to Birmingham. My grandparents took me and my mum into a forest and set up a picnic blanket. The three of them told me they were going back to car to get the food…and they never came back. I sat on that blanket for 4 hours straight until Quinque and Ji found me."

"Who are Quinque and Ji?" asked Toph.

"They are my salvation," I said, giving a slight smile. "If it weren't for them, I would've lost my mind a long time ago. Once I got to General, I promoted them to Admiral of the water bending fleet and Commander of the earth benders, respectively."

"You're friends with a water bender?" asked Sokka, incredulous. "Sorry, but you don't really seem the type."

"That's what I thought about Zuko when I met him. Obviously, I was wrong."

"So wait. Let me get this straight," asked Aang, "Your parents abandoned you because you were a bender?" I nodded. "That's ridiculous!"

"My parents were Anti-Benders. I had to deal." I chuckled darkly. "I learnt to survive. Family are just weak links, just another device to be used against you. Anyway, I was much better off in the forest. Ji, Quinque and I made a name for ourselves by protecting the surrounding villages from Anti-Benders. Y'know, take from the rich to give to the poor?"

"Kinda like Jet…" Katara muttered.

"Who's Jet?" I asked perplexed. Katara blushed and looked away.

"Anyway," I continued, throwing Katara a look, "We got a reputation. Quite a big one, and when we heard that there was a proper bending army being formed, we signed up immediately, assuming we would get put high up for our work in Birmingham. Obviously, we didn't. We got put as mere Privates. This was when I was, what, 13? Since then, I have been slowly working my way up the ranks. When I got put in Commander to the previous General, I convinced him to set up camp in Evergreen, as this was the one place I know well enough to battle on."

"What happened to the previous General?" asked Aang.

I shrugged. "I destroyed his honour in an Agni Kai, and he got deported." Zuko starred at me open mouthed.

"You did what?"

"I beat him in an Agni Kai. And he got deported."

"That's cruel! You just let him get deported, did you?"

I shook my head in desperation. "Zuko, you aren't seeing the bigger picture. It was compulsory for me to acquire the role as General. If I hadn't, well, this war would have been lost months ago. You have to make sacrifices. Plus, that guy was old and washed up. I'm sure he's having a nice retirement." Sokka gave me a disbelieving look. "Listen, I did what I had to. Not that it's much help, seeing as I'm going to be deported in a few days."

Toph frowned. "How come? If you got this far up the ranks, you must've one more than a few battles?"

"Yeah, but our wonderful Fire Lord despises me with a burning hatred. She wants me deported – no, sorry, HE – and has now decreed if I do not claim London in the upcoming siege, I'm gone and all my commanders are going to be demoted. But that ain't it. Not by a long shot…" Faces looked at me expectantly, and I turned to Azula, who had been silent throughout the entire thing, "Well, Zuly? Should I tell them?"

"Go for it."

I smiled, and turned back. "The thing is…the Fire Lord isn't actually a man. He's a girl, same age as me. Her name is Marni Blossom." Zuko's eyebrows shot up.

"So the General of the Anti-Bender army is your ex-boyfriend and your leader is his girlfriend?"

"Wow, well done Zuzu. Yeah. Fire Lord Marni does NOT deserve the title Fire Lord. That title has always belonged to me, and if I fail in this battle, I will take her down." Iroh sighed.

"You've changed, young one." I turned to him and gave him a sneer.

"Of course I have. War, family neglection and shit like that usually does change you."

"Chloe, don't talk to Iroh like that! He's just trying to help!" I spun and looked Zuko in the eye, my mind crackling with anger.

"I have a war to run, Zuko. I can't afford to be weak and listen to old men's stories. I have a lot of plans to make. Azula," I called out, and she put down her cup of tea, "Come on. Well need to talk strategies with Ji." And with that, Azula and I left the tent, Leaving Zuko with his washed out uncle and idiotic friends.


	8. Chapter 4: What We Used To Be

As I strode out of the tent, Zuly in tow, I could already hear the muttering beginning. I caught Mai's voice drifting out of the flap, something to do with my psychopathic tendencies. Azula lingered by the flap, her eyes drifting aimlessly around. In my previous rage of finding her locked up, I hadn't realised just how much this episode in her world had affected her. It was like Azula was a completely different person, she looked as…well, not all of her was there. An important part missing from her personality. I figured then, that despite Azula's cunning with battle strategies, it really wasn't what she needed right then.

I allowed my war-hardened eyes to soften as I met Azula's gaze. I reached out, took the hand that wasn't clutching her cup of saffron tea, and led her carefully through the throng of tents and rubble that made up Camp Evergreen. In the end, we did reach the strategies room, but I didn't intend us to talk war. No, that would probably just make Azula worse. We were going to talk about her, and lies, and especially about the answers I wanted to hear utter from her lips.

Azula sat down on one of the hard wooden chairs with her tea, curling into the fetal position again. It was as if…afraid. But that was impossible; this was Zuly we were talking about. Azula wasn't afraid of anything or anyone. Well, as I thought that it dawned on me. She was afraid of something, she had always been afraid of something. The pressure as a princess, the perfection required…failure. The failure with the Avatar had driven my Zuly over the edge and they hadn't done ANYTHIGN to help her but lock her away where the sun would never shine. It was like they wanted her to stay crazy, and forever alone.

Whilst I came to my conclusions about Zuly's break down, she never muttered a word. I wasn't even sure I could hear her breathing, and I could normally hear everyone breathing. Sighing, I walked over, and knelt down next to Zuly's chair.

"Really, Zuly? Talk to me. You're a wreck, you're shivering and not saying a word, and you're actually drinking tea. This is wrong, and you know it." I stood up and lifted her head so as to look her in the eyes, which immediately began to fill with tears.

"Help me, Chloe…I don't know what I am anymore. I'm a failure…" Azula began to crumble again, beginning to lift her head down, and I grabbed it and yanked it up sharply.

"Shut up." Her eyes widened at my harsh words, "Just shut up, Azula. Yes, you failed. We all fail." Azula's eyes narrowed, "I don't want any of this: 'I'm such a failure' crap, because it's a LIE. Just like you lied to me about Zuko's death."

The cup of tea fell from Azula's hands as she stood quickly and had me a lock hold, my face pressed to the strategy table, "I did that to protect you," she sneered weakly, obviously out of practice, "You would have wasted valuable years pining for them if I had told you the shameful truth!"

"Shameful truth? HA!" I wriggled out of the lock hold, punched Azula and stood ready for another attack, "Zuzu stood up or what he believed in, which is more than could be said for you!"

"You find his disobeying of the Fire Nation inspirational?" Azula was in full battle mode now. "Well, that just goes to show why you aren't Fire Lord, and never will be!" She punched a blue fireball at me, sending me tumbling out of the flap in the tent. I righted myself, a look of pure, unadulterated hate for my one-time best friend.

"So, Zuly, what happened to 'failure' Azula? I guess you didn't get to be Fire Lord EITHER!" On that word, I chucked a glowing green fireball at Azula, which she barely dodged, stumbling slightly, whilst it hurtled into a near-by tent, setting it ablaze, "I, however, Zuly, have not failed, and never will!"

"Oh really?" She spat, getting to her feet, her crimson kimono and trousers singed, the flyaway hair blowing in a sudden wind, "You are despised by your Fire Lord, how ever will you win?" Azula ran at me, yelling like an animal as she did, her hands alight with blue. I met her head on, grappling, falling to the floor with her.

By this time, some of my soldiers had run over to put out the tent I had set alight, and a crowd was growing around us, whispering about their beloved Fire General and her best friend. Ji had come into my tent, I supposed, after I ran out with Azula, because there he was, running out with Zuko's friends in tow.

Azula and I had abandoned the formality of bending by now, and were basically just clawing and punching at each other's faces like cats in an alley. I could see a deep bruise begin to develop around Zuly eye, and my split lip was stinging, but that didn't stop us. Well, not at least until Ji got involved. Grabbing me under the arms, he pulled me away from Azula, and stamped, encasing mine and Azula's arms and legs in an earthen prison, whilst he let us shout insults at each other.

"You bitch!" I shrieked at Azula, struggling frantically to get free, "After all I've done for you, rescuing you from that goddamn prison and fixing you up! Maybe you would be better off in there, so they can throw away the key for you to ROT!"

"After all you've done for ME?" Exclaimed Azula, trying to get free just as much as I, "Who taught you to fire bend? Who introduced this world to fire bending? ME! You should be grateful!"

"Grateful? Damn it, your Father taught me to Fire Bend not you and–" I stopped dead in my tracks, my adrenaline-filled mind finding it hard to concentrate on anything other than getting out of the dirt encasing me and ripping Azula's throat out. She introduced Fire Bending to the world…wait.

"What's wrong, Clo-Clo? Cat got your tongue?" Azula sneered nastily.

"No, but one poisonous little bitch who loves to ruin lives has." I glared, tears pricking my eyes, "Azula…Even you shouldn't have stooped that low. You introduced bending to the world. So, tell me, honey, how many non-bending families did you visit whilst telling me for the rest of the year you were in 'your' world? How many people's minds did you corrupt?"

Azula's face was that of someone who had been slapped around the face with a very hard, very cold truth. Which, in fact, metaphorically speaking, she had. "I…I…I was only..." She was reverting to the meek, quiet, broken Azula to before, her sentences breaking and the struggling stopping. I knew I should stop with the torment there, but the pent up exasperation and pain from the abandonment of my parents, the loss of friends, the pure sacrifice of my innocence, and I finally had someone to blame it on.

"Azula, you and you pathetic little 'Daddy's Girl' antics ended up destroying families, starting a war, and murdering hundreds upon thousands of innocent people. Lemme guess, Daddy wanted to take part in a experiment, am I right? And I was prototype?" Azula's blank stare said it all. I growled, breaking out of the constrains of Ji's rock, and ran over to where Azula was still restrained. I leant down to her ear, and whispered menacingly: "Do you know how easily I could break your neck now, Azula? I just need a reason why not to. Can you give me one please?"

I was expecting Azula to beg for her life, but no sound came. I drew back from her ear, and stared at her, obvious she was on the edge again. I couldn't say another criticism, her eyes were so empty it was tearing up whatever I had left of a conscience. I shook my head, looked to ground, and went to leave.

Ji grabbed my arm. "Chloe," he whispered quietly, "Don't ruin Azula's chance for recovery."

I shook his arm off. "No, Ji. She ruined MY chance of recovery. It's the knowledge that my so-called best friend destroyed the only chance of normality that I ever had and plunged my world in war that makes it impossible to forgive. I'm sorry…" I pushed past Zuko's friend, to see them staring at me, and walked to my tent, my eyes pricking with tears once more.


End file.
